General Electric (GE) Power & Water will lead the technical tasks for this project and GE-Global Research (as a sub-awardee) will provide consulting services for materials and cooling assessments. GE will develop their multi-tube mixer combustion technology as an innovative turbomachinery component that contributes towards the DOE’s goal for advanced gas turbine efficiencies that are greater than 65 percent in combined cycle applications. This project will develop and synthesize GE’s combustion system with goals of achieving low nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions up to turbine inlet temperatures of 3100 degrees Fahrenheit while also supporting the load-following needs of a modern grid. Phase I is structured to first push the temperature entitlement by creating an ultra-compact design that minimizes both NOx formation and the surface area that needs to be cooled, followed by a second push that gives the architecture the adjustability it needs to meet the engine’s load-following requirements. This initial phase will be focused on in-depth engineering analysis and design with a minimal amount of laboratory testing to enable a down-select of the top three combustion architectures. This project will build upon the advancements achieved on an earlier DOE contract, DE-FC26-05NT42643.

Project Benefits

GE’s novel combustion system will significantly improve the economics of gas turbine power generation by enabling over 65 percent combined cycle plant efficiency –an almost 5 point improvement over the most advanced current platforms. This in turn will allow for greater utilization of the unconventional gas resources in the U.S. while further reducing greenhouse gas emissions per megawatt of power produced. Furthermore, the underlying elements it incorporates will each have important technical ramifications: the advanced multi-tube premixer will enable robust fuel flexibility, with the inherent ability to be adapted to carbon-free fuels from coal gasification with carbon capture; the architecture elements will open the door to incorporating variable geometry in existing platforms, enabling greater operating ranges to further accommodate increased renewable penetration in the generation mix; and the exit staging can potentially be retrofitted to the existing fleet for a much greater reduction in the carbon footprint of what is currently almost 30 percent of total electrical generation in the U.S.